James Franco Admits, “I Wish I Was Gay”

James Franco has made a name for himself playing a slew of non-traditional heroes, but the actor/director/performance artist/poet wants to make it clear that those characters aren’t him — although he doesn’t mind if you want to believe the rumors.

James, who constantly pushes himself with ever-more challenging roles, from trapped climber Aron Ralston in 127 Hours to poet Allen Ginsberg in Howl (and, of course, his work in the cinematic masterpiece Spring Breakers), opened up to the Daily Beast about the difficulty some fans seem to have separating his on-screen persona from his personal life.

When asked what seem to be the most common misconceptions and criticisms about him, James revealed, “People maybe think I’m gay… they think I’m very into myself … and I squint a lot.”

James went on to explain that, during his Comedy Central Roast, he welcomed the jabs about his sexuality, because it only helped to further what he found to be a fun and harmless perception about him.

“If that’s what they were going to make fun of me for, I was like, ‘Great! Bring on the gay jokes!’ because these aren’t insults at all. I don’t even care if people think I’m gay, so it was like, ‘Awesome!’ I mean, I wish I was … I wish I was gay,” said James.

Well, James, if that’s ever something you find out about yourself, rest assured that won’t change anyone’s feelings about your ability to host the Oscars.